Jef I. Richards

The law requires a paper towel ad to be scrupulously honest, but allows political candidates to lie without reproach. What’s wrong with this picture?

Creative without strategy is called ‘art.’ Creative with strategy is called ‘advertising.’

Advertising is speech. It’s regulated because it’s often effective speech.

If its not done ethically, advertising won’t be trusted. If consumers don’t trust it, advertising is pointless.

Congress seems to believe that ‘Children are our future’ is a phrase coined by tobacco advertisers.

Commercial speech is like obscenity… we can’t seem to define it, but we know it when we see it.

There is a huge difference between journalism and advertising. Journalism aspires to truth. Advertising is regulated for truth. I’ll put the accuracy of the average ad in this country up against the average news story any time.

Advertising is the ‘wonder’ in Wonder Bread.

In advertising, sex sells. But only if you’re selling sex.

Advertising is totally unnecessary. Unless you hope to make money.

In the world of commercial speech, tobacco advertising bears the earmarks of an endangered species.

While it may be true that the best advertising is word-of-mouth, never lose sight of the fact it also can be the worst advertising.

There’s so much truly putrid advertising out there it’s embarrassing. But not all advertising is bad. Some of it is really quite mediocre.

Is advertising a profession, like law or medicine? How many new parents clutch their baby to their breast and declare, ‘I want this child to grow up to be a media planner’?

I wish all consumers were as gullible as advertising’s biggest critics. Anyone who believes advertising is that powerful will believe almost anything.

The Death of Advertising? I think that’s in the book of Revelation. It’s the day when people everywhere become satisfied with their weight, their hair, their skin, their wardrobe, and their aroma.

Creativity is an advertising agency’s most valuable asset, because it is the rarest.

I believe ‘credibility’ is one of the biggest issues yet to be addressed by Internet advertisers.